No end to learning: 75-year-old Emirati gets Master’s degree

Selfie with son from his graduation ceremony went viral online.

Dubai: A 75-year-old Emirati is receiving a lot of love online after his son tweeted a selfie from the elderly man’s graduation ceremony.

Ali Mohammad Naji decided to go back to college after retiring from his job and graduated from a two-year-MBA course yesterday. His son, Fahed Ali, shared selfies from the ceremony on Twitter and wrote: “My father at age 75 decided to continue his education. Today was his graduation ceremony and he was awarded a Master’s degree. Proud of you father #UAE.”

The tweet quickly received almost a thousand retweets and 1,900 likes. Speaking to Gulf News, Ali said he was surprised by the attention the post got as he just meant to share a personal moment on his account.

“My father is retired now and because of all his responsibilities at work and home he could not complete his Master’s degree. He went to school and then was sponsored to do a higher diploma in Scotland back in 1980 during his services in Adnoc. Now, that he has more time, he decided to go back to university,” Ali told Gulf News.

Naji hopes his story will set an example for his children, grandchildren as well as Emiratis everywhere.

“There is no end to getting knowledge, whenever time permits. A person could be occupied at certain times in his life but then he should pick up the chance to learn, whenever time is available. Time is precious so you better utilitse it in the right way, which would help you and your community,” he said.

“My sincere gratitude to our leaders in the UAE who are giving full support and eliminating all obstacles towards education and knowledge,” he added

Naji’s story resonated with a lot of social media users, with tweeps sending messages congratulating Ali and his father on the accomplishment.

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